UFC champion Conor McGregor is likely to retire if he is defeated by Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 229, according to a leading MMA analyst.

"If McGregor loses, in my opinion, he will retire," Robin Black told RT Sport.

"If Khabib loses this fight, not only does he lose his undefeated record, but these loses to someone like McGregor, when the temperature has been raise, these losses are painful, they change a fighter forever.

"Look what happened to Jose Aldo.

"A loss for Khabib isn’t just his first loss.

"It’s a loss to an arch enemy. It’s a loss to somebody that every one of his fans wants him to destroy. It’s a loss to someone he thinks is ‘a clown'.

"It’s a loss to someone he thinks doesn’t belong there with him."

While Nurmagomedov might come in as the more prepared fighter, with McGregor having not fought since 2016 at UFC 205, Black warned the Russian not to underestimate the Irishman when they face off on October 6 in Las Vegas.

"When you face Conor McGregor, the stakes are much, much higher, then when you face anybody else," Black said.

"Because by this point your fans want you to destroy this Irishman, that want you to destroy ‘that clown.’ And that adds a lot of pressure."